Glass and Lace

Today I decided to take a trip to a couple of the outer islands. 
I found my way to the 'fondamente nove', which just means 'new foundation' that runs by a canal.  This is about a 30 minute walk through Venice's Cannaregio district.
I bought my ACTV daily pass which allows me on any water transport boat throughout Venice and the outer islands for a 24 hour period.
I caught the boat at the pier and took a seat.
The first island I visited was Murano.  Famous world wide for it's beautiful glass works the island is very industrial with a lot of smelting factories and glass stores.  Not very pretty, but interesting.
I then caught the next boat to another island, Burano.  I had been told by my AirBnB host that this island was lovely and if I had the time I should go.  He was not wrong!
The island is covered in pretty coloured houses, all painted the colours of the rainbow.  The little island is busy with tourists but nothing like Venice .... you can walk around in spaces where there are no other people.
Burano is noted for it's handmade lace which is still made there today.  This, and tourism, is it's only source of income.  The Islanders take great pride in their houses and most had been freshly painted, with lovely flower boxes and ornaments. 
It has a very old world charm to it, with laundry strung from the windows and little rowboats moving goods up and down the canals.  I had a quick bite to eat at a cafe and got talking to a family from Cologne, Germany.  They all spoke excellent English and they were happy to be able to practice.  They are hoping to visit Canada next year.
After having my fill of little, coloured houses, I decided to catch the ferry back to Venice.
There is one more bucket list item I must do before I leave ... a Gondola ride !
Only a few minutes walk from where my flat was and on the Grand Canal, I found Marcello.  He was sitting all by himself on a chair next to his Gondola waiting for his next meal ticket ... I mean Patron :D.  Gondola rides aren't cheap .. you rent the gondola for 30 minutes and you can pile up to 6 people in it ... it will cost you 80 Euros (about $130 cdn).  It was just lonely little me so the whole 80 euros was mine to bear ... but it had to be done.
The ride was really lovely and Marcello sang the entire way (he especially like to reverb under the bridges) ... he's quite a good singer to be fair.
After saying goodbye to my Gondolier and strolled one last time down the Grand Canal, stopping for dinner and nabbing a table right on the waters edge.  What a lovely way to end my time in Venice.
Tomorrow I had for the cultural capital of Austria ... Vienna (and the Lippizaners !!!!!)